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1999 Spanish Grand Prix
30 May |officialname = XLI Gran Premio Marlboro de España |circuit = Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Circuit de Catalunya |location = Barcelona, Spain |circuittype = Permanent racing facility |lapdistance = 4.728 |laps = 65 |distance = 307.196 |pole = Mika Häkkinen |polenation = FIN |poleteam = |poletime = 1:22.088 |fastestlap = 1:24.982 |fastestlapdriver = Michael Schumacher |fastestlapnation = GER |fastestlapteam = |fastestlapnumber = 29 |winner = Mika Häkkinen |winnernation = FIN |winnerteam = |second = David Coulthard |secondnation = GBR |secondteam = |third = Michael Schumacher |thirdnation = GER |thirdteam = }} The 1999 Spanish Grand Prix, otherwise officially advertised as the XLI Gran Premio Marlboro de España, was the fifth round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, held on the 30 May 1999 at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona, Spain.'Spanish GP, 1999', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr635.html, (Accessed 27/08/2019) The race would see Mika Häkkinen secure an impressive victory for , in what would be among the duller races of F1 history. The Finn had gained the advantage in qualifying, sweeping to his fifth straight pole position of the campaign. Eddie Irvine provided the biggest threat to Häkkinen and hence ended up in second, with David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher completing the second row. Häkkinen duly aced his start to secure an early lead, while Coulthard got the jump on Irvine to secure second behind his teammate. Irvine himself, meanwhile, would be bumped back to fifth, as Jacques Villeneuve blasted through to third from sixth in the , with Schumacher following him through. Elsewhere, Olivier Panis and Marc Gené stalled on the grid, although while Panis would get back into the fray, Gené's race was over by a gearbox failure. Otherwise the start was fairly tame, with the only action coming as Irvine and Schumacher squabbled behind Villeneuve. The two McLaren-Mercedes quickly pulled clear at the head of the field, with Villeneuve proving to be an excellent road-block for the two s. Indeed, it quickly became clear that the only way the scarlet cars would pass the BAR would be in the pitstops, with Irvine opening the pit window on lap 23. Häkkinen stopped on the following lap, rejoining behind teammate Coulthard, while Villeneuve and Schumacher came in on lap 25. A quick stop for Ferrari saw the German ace leave ahead of the Canadian, while Irvine used his brief spell in clear air after his stop to jump ahead of the #22 BAR as well. Coulthard was the last to stop and rejoined in second, with Heinz-Harald Frentzen, yet to stop, in between himself and Schumacher. The German racer himself would first have to force his way past his compatriot, before hunting down Coulthard prior to their second stops. Schumacher would close to within a second of the Scot on lap 41, before bailing on his charge to make his second stop of the afternoon. Häkkinen and Coulthard then came in on the following laps, with Coulthard's later stop ensuring that he spent less time in the pits, and therefore emerged ahead of the German. With that the fight for the podium was over, with the two McLarens once again easing clear from Schumacher. Elsewhere, Villeneuve's race was ruined by a wing and gearbox failure, releasing Irvine, while Rubens Barrichello was battling Jarno Trulli and Damon Hill for the final point behind Ralf Schumacher. That, ultimately, was that for the race, with Häkkinen cruising across the line to secure his second win of the season. Coulthard was next ahead of Schumacher, while Irvine and Ralf Schumacher were a distant fourth and fifth respectively. Trulli duly came home in sixth ahead of Barrichello, with the Brazilian later disqualified from the race for using an illegal undertray. Background Michael Schumacher extended his Championship lead with his second straight victory of the campaign, leaving Monte Carlo with an eight point advantage. Eddie Irvine remained his closest challenger, and had inched further away from Mika Häkkinen in third. Heinz-Harald Frentzen had also slipped further back in fourth, while Ralf Schumacher retained his top five status. In the Constructors Championship had managed to claim a perfect score, meaning their Championship lead had been greatly enhanced. They left Monaco on 44 points, 24 more than second placed rivals , whom kept throwing away points with mistakes and poor reliability. Behind had retained third ahead of , while completed the top five. Entry list The full entry list for the is outlined below: Practice Overview Qualifying Qualifying Report Qualifying Results The full qualifying results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session. *'Bold' indicates a driver's best/qualifying time. Grid Race Report Results The full results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car. ** Barrichello was disqualified from the results after using an illegal undertray mounting. Milestones * Eleventh victory for Mika Häkkinen.'5. Spain 1999', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/espagne.aspx, (Accessed 27/08/2019) ** Also the 30th podium finish for Häkkinen. * 118th win for as a constructor. ** secured their 23rd win as an engine supplier. Standings Mika Häkkinen moved into second in the Championship after his second win of the season, leaving Spain six behind the leader. Michael Schumacher had therefore retained his lead in the hunt, although his advantage had been reduced by the Finn severely after his win. Behind, Eddie Irvine had lost ground in third, as had Heinz-Harald Frentzen at the head of the next group of drivers in fourth. In the Constructors Championship it had been a positive day for , who cut the gap between themselves and to fifteen points. The Scuderia still led the way, leaving Spain on 51, although McLaren-Mercedes had the advantage in raw pace with a third of the season gone. Elsewhere, seemed to already be out of the fight in third, with and completing the top five. Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown. References Images and Videos: * References: Category:Grand Prix articles Category:Spanish Grand Prix Category:Formula One races in Spain Category:1999 Grands Prix